🦋 ALTHEA
Ivanna stepped inside, alone, and fear wedged itself deep into my bones. I shuffled on the bed, cradling my injuries. My lungs refused to expand past my chest as my ribs ached. Once the adrenaline and shock from my exchange with her mother faded, the pain made itself known.
I bit back a scream as Ivanna came closer, her expression not as openly hostile as her mother's. Hers was unreadable, like she had raised walls around herself that no one could scale.
My dread only festered as she closed the distance between us in a few strides. The Moon's Betrayal
The air became a taut rope as neither of us spoke. The tension hummed an eerie tune as we stared at one another.
She finally spoke, her words lacking inflection. "Strip," she ordered.
Ice flooded my veins.
I blinked in horror, not sure if I had heard her correctly. The last thing I wanted was to be even more vulnerable before these people.
My skin crawled as if her eyes were already raking over my bare flesh.
